Traditions of origin. 2. In the eastern part of the Province they have a curious legend to explain their origin:—“There were two Brâhman brothers so devout that after bathing they used to throw their loin cloths up to the skies, where they dried and came down when they were wanted. One day the brothers were in the forest and were athirst. The elder brother directed the younger to climb a mahua tree and see if there was any water in the cavities of the trunk. He did so and found water, which in his greediness he drank, and, lying to his elder brother, denied that there was any water in the tree. Next day they threw their loin cloths up to the sky as usual, and when they wanted them only that of the elder brother came down. So he knew that his brother had lied unto him. The younger brother denied the charge. Then Parameswar came down from heaven, and, convicting the younger brother of falsehood, ordered that the elder brother should remain a Brâhman, while the younger should tend the nâg bel or pân plant, which he formed out of the sacred thread of the offender, and that the elder brother should serve the younger brother as his priest.” Another story is that Brahma created them to save Brâhmans from the labour of growing the plant. Traditionally the Tâmbûlika or seller of betel is descended from a Sûdra woman by a Vaisya man. The caste is probably occupational and of mixed origin. In Gorakhpur they say that once a Brâhman had three sons. He came down with them from fairy land and was able to support them only by growing betel, for which he was excommunicated. They explain the name of the caste as derived from baraitha, the betel conservatory, which comes from the Sanskrit vriti. The Gorakhpur branch fix on Bîrbhânpur, in the Azamgarh District, as their head-quarters.

Internal structure. 3. In the last Census returns the Barais were recorded in no less than one hundred and forty-seven sub-castes. Of these a large number are local, such as the Aharwâr of Ahâr, the Ajudhyabâsi of Ajudhya, the Audha of Awadh, the Bindrabanbâsi of Bindraban, the Chaurasiya of Chaurâsi, in Mirzapur, the Dakkhinâha or “Southern,” the Gorakhpuri, Jaiswâr, Jaunpuri, Kânhpuriya, of Cawnpur, Mahobiya, Pachhwâhân or “Western”; Sarjupâri or “residents beyond the river Sarju,” Sribâstab of Srâvasti; and Uttarâha or “Northern.” Many, again, are connected by origin or function with other tribes, as the Banya, Banjariya, Baiswâr, Chauhân, Donwâr, Gaderiya, [[179]]Gahlot, Gauriya, Gondar, Jâdubansi, Katheriya, Karwâra, Kokâs, Maharwa, Nâgbansi, Nânakshâhi, Ummar, Pansariya, Panwariya, Râjbansi, Rauteli, Sândil, Shuklabans. This will give some idea of the diverse elements out of which the caste has been composed.

4. In Mirzapur they name seven endogamous sub-castes, Partâbgarhi (from Partâbgarh), Chaurâsi (the Chaurasiya of Benares)[82], Jaiswâr or Jaiswâra Nâsarkhâni (the Nâsalkâni of Benares), Tâmboli, Uttarâha (“Northern”), Pachhiwâha (“Western”). Mr. Sherring adds Sribâstava (from Srâvasti), Bherihâra (“tenders of sheep”), Magahiya (from Magadha), Phuihâra, and Dhanwariya. Of these three, the Magahiya, Chaurasiya, and Jaiswâr appear in Behâr, where there are two others, Semariya and Sokhwa. In the Central Duâb they are divided into the Chaurasiya, who prepare betel, and the Katyâr, who sell it. In Gorakhpur we have the Kanaujiya, Chaurasiya, and Jaiswâr.

Marriage rules. 5. Marriage within the endogamous sub-castes is regulated by a rule of exogamy, which forbids marriage in the family of the paternal and maternal uncle and paternal and maternal aunt as long as there is any recollection of relationship, which is usually after five or six generations. But at the same time they usually marry locally in the families of those with whom they are accustomed to eat and smoke. In Mirzapur the Partâbgarhi are distinguished from the Chaurâsi, inasmuch that the former permit the use of spirits while the latter prohibit it. They marry their daughters at the age of eight or nine, and their sons at twelve or thirteen. A man cannot take a second wife unless he proves to the satisfaction of the tribal council that the first wife is barren, disobedient, extravagant, or a thief, and even then he has to pay a fine to the council, which is spent in a tribal feast. They seldom take more than two wives. They have the usual forms of marriage,—Charhauwa for the well-to-do, Dola for poor people, and Sagâi for widows. In both the regular forms of virgin marriage the binding portions of the ceremony are the worshipping of the bridegroom’s feet (pair pûja, pânw pûja) by the father of the bride, and marking of the parting of the bride’s hair with red lead (sindurdan). In Sagâi the only ceremony is dressing the bride in a suit of clothes and ornaments provided by the bridegroom, [[180]]and the feeding of his relations and clansmen. Intertribal infidelity is lightly regarded and is condoned by a tribal feast, but fornication with an outsider involves excommunication. They have the extraordinary rule that a woman who poisons her husband is excommunicated. If a man, in spite of the admonition and punishment administered by the tribal council, refuses to support his wife or loses caste, the council permit the woman to leave her husband, and, if she so pleases, to marry again by the Sagâi form.

Religion. 6. They are seldom initiated into any special sect. Like all Hindus of the same class, when the men get old they undergo a process of initiation and become devotees (bhagat: Sanskrit, bhakta). The only effect of this is that they abstain from meat and fish, and attend more carefully to their religious duties, such as attending temples, ceremonial bathing, etc. To the east of the Province their special deities are Mahâbîr, the Pânchonpîr, Bhawâni, Hardiha Deva, or Hardaur, Sokha Bâba and Nâgbeli. Sokha Bâba is the special deity of the Nâsarkhâni sub-caste, and, if neglected, ruins their pân gardens. They can tell nothing about him. He seems to be a deified exorciser or magician, sokha (Sanskrit: sukshma, “acute, subtle”) being the equivalent of Ojha. Nâgbel or Nâgarbel is the special deity of the pân plant. Hardiha is the special deity of the Barais of South Mirzapur. Mahâbîr receives an offering of sweetened bread (rota), gram, Brâhmanical threads (janeû), and loin cloths. His holy day is Tuesday. The Pânchonpîr receive rice cooked in milk (jawar), and fried cakes (puri), which are offered on Wednesday. Bhawâni is honoured with the sacrifice of a he-goat or ram, and sweets and cakes (halwa-puri). Hardiha is worshipped in secret inside the house on Monday. On Wednesday they fast in honour of the Pânchonpîr. Sokha Bâba is said to have a temple in Magadha (Behâr). His offering consists of sweets and cakes (halwa-puri). These deities are worshipped only by that member of the family who is under the influence of the special divinity—a fact shown by his getting into a state of ecstasy and uttering oracles. Only those who cultivate pân worship Nâgbel by lighting a lamp in the conservatory and making a burnt-offering (hom). The special day for the Nâgbel worship is the fifth of the first half of Sâwan. The greater gods are worshipped through Tiwâri Brâhmans, and the minor deities by [[181]]some specially inspired member of the family. They cremate their dead in the ordinary way, and some go to Gaya to perform the srâddha ceremony.

Occupation. 7. Betel is the term applied to the leaf of the piper betel chewed with the areca nut, which is hence improperly called betel-nut. The word, according to the authorities is Malayâlam, vettila, i.e., veru + ila = “simple or mere leaf,” and comes to us through the Portuguese betre and betle.[83] Areca is the seed, or, in common parlance, the nut, of the palm areca catechu. The word is Malayâlam, addakka, and comes to us through the Portuguese.[84] There are various methods of preparing the compound known as pân supâri. “Garcias da Horta says distinctly:—‘In chewing betre they mix areca with it and a little lime; some add licio (i.e., catechu); but the rich and grandees add some Borneo camphor, and also some lign aloes, musk, and ambergris.’ ”[85] Abul Fazl says:—“They also put some betel-nut and kath (catechu) on one leaf and some lime paste on another and roll them up: this is called a berah (bîra). Some put camphor and musk into it, and tie up both leaves with a silk thread.”[86] This is very much the modern practice, except that the two leaves are very generally fastened together with a clove. The conservatory in which the pân is grown is treated with great reverence by the grower.[87] They do not allow women to enter it, and permit no one to touch the plant or throw the leaves into fire. Very often they are given rent-free holdings by rich landlords to tempt them to settle in their neighbourhood. The women have an indifferent reputation, as they manage shops, and those who are attractive secure the most custom. They eat pakki cooked by all Brâhmans, Kshatriyas, and Vaisyas, except Kalwârs. In Gorakhpur, it is said, they eat pakki only from the hands of Brâhmans and Kshatriyas. They eat kachchi only if cooked by members of their own caste. Ghatiya Brâhmans and Râjputs eat pakki cooked by them. The highest caste which will eat kachchi cooked by them is the Nâi. They eat mutton and goat’s flesh, and some indulge in spirituous liquors. [[182]]

Distribution of the Barais according to the Census of 1891.

District.Sub-Castes.Total.
Chaurasiya.Jaiswâr.Others.
Mathura … … 327 327
Fatehpur 142 … 32 174
Bânda 379 … 22 401
Hamîrpur 1,088 … 142 1,230
Allahâbâd 6,768 16 922 7,706
Jhânsi 163 … 193 356
Lalitpur 970 … 298 1,268
Benares 2,608 62 245 2,915
Mirzapur 4,329 11 25 4,365
Jaunpur 5,734 927 225 6,886
Ghâzipur 5,580 32 643 6,255
Ballia 5,512 426 461 6,399
Gorakhpur 12,856 9,884 6,258 28,998
Basti … 26,859 1,054 27,913
Azamgarh … 8,760 1,977 10,737
Lucknow 95 … 163 258
Unâo 579 … … 579
Sîtapur 780 … 461 1,241
Hardoi 5,177 … 253 5,430
Kheri 462 … 216 678
Faizâbâd 80 10,612 122 10,814
Gonda 7 16,594 23 16,624
Bahrâich … 21 1,045 1,066
Sultânpur 2,800 1,478 478 4,756
Partâbgarh 5,746 6 190 5,942
Bârabanki … 103 … 103
Total 61,855 75,791 15,775 153,421

[[183]]

Baranwâl, Baranwâr.—A sub-caste of Banyas who take their name from the old town of Baran, the modern Bulandshahr. They are principally found in the Rohilkhand, Benares, and Gorakhpur Divisions. Curiously enough they have entirely avoided Bulandshahr, their old home. As illustrating the domestic customs of Banyas the following account from Mirzapur may be given:—